Clayton Kershaw, The Arrival

Here's what the boys at Baseball Tonight had to say about Sliced Bread's debut last night. As you probably already know, this was an event that not only us Dodger fans but fantasy dorks worldwide were pretty excited about, and something that makes sports so fantastic. Let's be honest with ourselves, the Dodgers are not a good baseball team. The top two in their rotation have won a grand total of 1 game this month (and that coming on May 2nd). Jeff Kent looks to be just about cooked. James Loney hasn't hit for about two weeks. The highest paid player in team history is on the DL (which may not be such a bad thing, obviously). Today they left 12 men on base in a 3-1 defeat at the hands of the Cubs and very nearly caused me to throw my remote at the TV.

Someone like Kershaw gives us hope for a better tomorrow. I opted to wait 24 hours before writing about the fastball he blew past Schumaker and the jelly-leg he gave Troy Glaus in the first. Whether he ends up in Cooperstown or goes the way of one-time-prospect Edwin Jackson, having a prospect like Kershaw gives us a reason to believe. When was the last time you heard Dodger fans applauding pitches in the first inning? It's why we follow the box scores of AA teams on the other side of the country. It's why we send taunting emails to our friends who have the misfortune of being Giants fans. It's why we write blogs like this.

Photo via Kevork Djansezian / Associated Press

The Future Has Arrived

Clayton Kershaw is going to pitch today. I really don't think any more needs to be said on the subject, except perhaps that I set my alarm for 5:30 this morning to give myself the best possible chance of being able to add him in my fantasy league. Sadly, G SLIM had set his alarm for 4:30. This is going to be big.

WEST	W	L	PCT	GB	HOME	ROAD	RS	RA	STRK	L10
Arizona	29	20	.592	-	19-8	10-12	253	196	L 1	5-5
LA Dodgers	25	23	.521	3.5	14-11	11-12	226	209	L 2	6-4
San Francisco	20	29	.408	9	11-15	9-14	179	231	W 3	4-6
Colorado	19	30	.388	10	11-14	8-16	206	252	L 1	4-6
San Diego	18	33	.353	12	10-14	8-19	170	244	L 2	3-7

Despite Dodgers' Claims He's Not Quite Ready, Clayton Kershaw Changes Name to "Sliced Bread"

All kinds of Sliced Bread updates today courtesy of both Rob Neyer (Insider only) and a fascinating glimpse from Hardball Times. The Dodgers have opted NOT to bring Kershaw up to start on the 17th as was suggested earlier this week and are instead going to give Chang-Who the nod instead. Neyer seems to think the club is better suited having him continue to pitch in AA and maybe make a start or two in Las Vegas before calling him up (if even then) and I will default to his wisdom there.
Of note from Neyer:

"I don't know that Kershaw needs an entire season in AA, and nearly half a season in AAA. He seems to be a notch or two above Billingsley. But I don't believe it's in anyone's long-term interest for Kershaw to join the major-league rotation now, or any time within the next two or three months.
--SNIP--
Yes, it's difficult to play in the big leagues. Andruw Jones is living proof of that. But it's pretty clear that Kershaw's talented enough to survive in the majors, and perhaps even thrive, right now. We know he's got the pitches. And the performance? Thanks to lousy support, Kershaw hasn't won a game this spring; he's 0-3. But in 37 innings he's struck out 40 batters, walked 11, and hasn't given up even one home run. Last season Kershaw's control was a small concern, and his BB/9 ratio still isn't the best you'll see. Still, he's clear that he has little left to learn in the Southern League."

And from Hardball Times (seriously go to the website for an in-depth analysis of his mechanics and stuff):

"After running through Kershaw's mechanics, injury risk, overall stuff and numbers, we can now answer the question: Is Clayton Kershaw worth the hype? The answer is yes...for the most part. Kershaw has a couple of red flags, but pitchers who seem to have a good head on their shoulders, have an athletic build, possess two pitches that rate as plus to plus-plus and display clean mechanics are of a rare breed.

Health may be the only thing that could keep Kershaw from becoming a front line starter. Just how good Kershaw could become likely depends on the improvements he makes with his change-up and his command. If everything goes right, Kershaw could blossom into one of the five best starters in baseball."

So Dodger fans are going to have to wait and Yahoo! fantasy managers are going to have to keep going to the Player Pool typing his name in, in hopes he'll be added soon.